Trip to Kolkata

Posted on by

I had a wonderful trip to Calcutta over December 2015. Sitar player David Balaban and I travelled there together for a two week stay. It was an extremely successful trip. I was able to spend time with Pt Abhijit Banerjee at his home getting really good instruction in tabla. It was also extremely wonderful to finally meet him in person, as up to now I have only seen him “online”.

A key learning from the trip for me was the importance of good sound production in tabla, and how difficult it is to do this really well. There are many small tips and tricks, many of which are centred on the bayan (bass drum) to produce a fuller and more pleasing sound.

One thing I really enjoy (and miss) is the wonderful experience of sitting and learning in front of the guru. Many small interactions and chats take place which are not possible in the online medium.

I really look forward to the next opportunity to visit Abhijit Banerjee in person, in Calcutta or elsewhere.

Some photos from the trip:

  

5 thoughts on “Trip to Kolkata”

  1. Hi,

    first of all, thanks for this great blog. It’s full of valuable resources.
    Could you please share some of those tips about the bayan playing in a more pleasant and fuller way ?

    Thanks a lot

    Like

    Reply

    • Hi Pavel, thanks for your wonderful comment! Yes I will be happy to write something on that, please give me a few days. For this topic, it would probably be easier to explain via a video. I’ll record something. By the way, please tell something more about yourself and your tabla journey!

      Like

      Reply

      • Thanks a lot.

        I’m french, though my first name is slavic (my mother’s family was from Russia and Ukrainia).

        I was always really impressed by the sound of tabla, but I crossed the gap of learning to play it really recently. After some not so concluding lessons through Skype, I joined an association and found a guru online. He’s from Benares Gharan and was a shishya of Kumar Bose.

        I’m still at the beginning of that journey, but I try to find good exercises for practicing different parts of my hands.

        And once again, thanks for this great blog.

        Like

Leave a comment